History
The Main Line region, before 17th century European colonization, was part of Lenapehoking, the longtime homeland of the matrilineal Lenni Lenape Native Americans (the "true people", or "Delaware Indians"). The Main Line area was first resettled by Europeans in the 1600s, after William Penn sold a tract of land, called the Welsh Tract, to a group of Welsh Quakers in London in 1681. This accounts for the many Welsh place names in the area.
The Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad was constructed during the early nineteenth century as part of the Main Line of Public Works that spanned Pennsylvania. Later in the century, the railroad, which owned much of the land surrounding the tracks, encouraged the development of this picturesque environment by building way stations along the portion of its track closest to Philadelphia. The benefits of what was touted as "healthy yet cultivated country living" attracted Philadelphia's social elite, many of whom had one house in the city and another larger "country home" on the Main Line.
In the 20th century, many of these families relocated to the Main Line suburbs, part of the national trend of suburbanizaton. As a result, the Main Line saw rapid investment, prosperity, and growth, becoming greater Philadelphia's most affluent and fashionable region. The gracious estates with sweeping lawns and towering maples, the débutante balls and the Merion Cricket Club, which drew crowds of 25,000 spectators to its matches in the early 1900s, were the perfect setting for the classic 1940 Grant/Hepburn/Stewart motion picture The Philadelphia Story.
The railroad placed stops approximately two minutes apart, starting with Overbrook. The surrounding communities became known by the railroad station names which started at Broad Street Station in Center City Philadelphia and went on to 32nd St. Station, and then the Main Line stations: Overbrook, Merion, Narberth, Wynnewood, Ardmore, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, Rosemont, Villanova, Radnor, St. Davids, Wayne, Strafford, Devon, Berwyn, Daylesford, and Paoli. Malvern was added to regular suburban service later. At least five of these station buildings, along with the first Bryn Mawr Hotel, were designed by Wilson Brothers & Company. Broad Street Station was replaced with Suburban Station in 1930, and 30th Street Station replaced 32nd Street three years later. Suburban service now extends to Malvern, Exton, Whitford, Downingtown, and Thorndale. The train that served these stations was known as the "Paoli Local", and that name became a near-synonym for the Main Line itself.
The actual railroad line then continued on to Chicago, with major stations at Lancaster, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh. The railroad, since taken over by Amtrak, is still in service, although its route is slightly different from the original. It also serves the Paoli/Thorndale Line of the SEPTA Regional Rail system.
Read more about this topic: Pennsylvania Main Line
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